Playwright Bill Leavengood was worried that local critics might think his new comedy, Lourdes of the Flies, was too juvenile and silly. Leavengood made his rep in this area with more weighty work including the hit musicial “Webb’s City.”
And, sure enough, Mark Leib, writing in Creative Loafing, said just that. But Marty Clear, writing in the St. Petersburg Times, got the joke. He loved the show, thought the jokes were funny and praised the young actors in the cast. Here are some excerpts from his review:
“Leavengood’s script is clever and amusing from start to finish, with tons of chuckles… The way he integrates a few pointed sociological observations into such abject silliness is impressive.”
“The cast, made up mostly of high school and college students directed by Leavengood, is impressive…. their comic timing is sharp, their physical comedy is crisp and virtually all of the nine cast members have appealing stage presences. Tamara Austin, as the one African-American among the island’s inhabitants, is one standout.”
“…a broad and silly look at high school cliques. It borrows its title and the skeleton of its plot from William Golding’s harsh novel Lord of the Flies, but its humor, style and sensibility owe more to Gilligan’s Island and the plays of Charles Busch.”
“….the enormous appeal of Lourdes comes from its silliness and its coy bawdiness.”
To read the full review (and to see Marty’s critique of our Side Door cabaret as a theater space) visit:
And don’t miss this totally tacky tiki bar of a summer show. It runs through Labor Day weekend. Check the Palladium website for showtimes – www.mypalladium.org
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